1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to an image storing apparatus for storing images, an image control apparatus for transmitting a print order to a print command in response to a print order from a client, an output control apparatus for printing an image in accordance with the print command from the image control apparatus, an information processing apparatus for registering image data in the image storing apparatus, respectively running on a network realizing print services, a system of these apparatuses, a print control method for the system, and to a storage medium storing a computer readable program realizing the print control.
2. Related Background Art
The following methods have been incorporated in using print services on a network. A client which wishes to edit images receives editing images from an image storing apparatus on the network, edits the received images, and transmits the edited image data and a print order to an image control apparatus on the network.
Upon reception of the print order of image data from the client on the network, the image control apparatus (print controller) transmits a print command including the image data to an output control apparatus (print server) which then print the image data. In this case, character string data, graphic data and the like other than the image data are developed into print images and thereafter transmitted to the output control apparatus.
Upon reception of the print command from the image control apparatus on the network, the output control apparatus prints the image data contained in the print command, by using a printer engine.
In a conventional system in which image data is registered in an image server (image storing apparatus) via a network, a user space of the server has a limitation, the user space being used for storing registered image data and a charge for this space being billed to the user. In the case of a home page, for example, a provider lends a space of 5 to 10 MB to a user which can form a home page as desired so long as the memory amount does not exceed this limit. However, if image data is registered more than this limit, the provider gives the user an alarm via an electronic mail or the like, with a predetermined grace time. If the memory amount continues to exceed even after this grace time, an additional charge is billed to the user.
With the conventional methods described above, a client is required to receive editing image data of high resolution from the image storing apparatus. Furthermore, even after editing, image data of high resolution is required to be transmitted back to the image control apparatus. Accordingly, a load on data transmission on the network becomes large and it takes a long time to transmit data. Particularly, when print services are used on the Internet, a connection charge becomes large and the user has a large economic burden.
Further, since character string data, graphic data and the like in the print data contained in a print order transmitted from a client to an image control apparatus on the network, are developed into image data and thereafter transmitted. Therefore, image data, particularly image data having a number of colors, has a large data amount so that a load on data transmission on the network becomes large, and that a load on the image control apparatus receiving print orders from a number of clients becomes large and processing print orders is delayed.
Furthermore, since necessary image data is transmitted always from the image server having original image data, a load on the image server becomes large.
Still further, with the conventional methods, even if a user unintentionally registers image data in excess of a limit space, this excessive registration cannot be recognized at that time so that the registration cannot be stopped or other countermeasures cannot be performed.
An alarm by an electronic mail or the like may not be read by the user so that there is a possibility of billing an additional charge while the user does not recognize.